Lefert, Colupaev (200 Free), Jones (3M) Make NCAA Finals
March 25, 2011 | Men's Swimming & Diving
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Senior Clement Lefert and freshman Dimitri Colupaev finished third and fourth, respectively in the 200y free prelims to earn a spot in the `A' final while junior Harrison Jones qualified for the final on 3-meter to highlight the Trojans' efforts on the second day of prelims at the 2011 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships in Minneapolis, Minn., on Friday (March 25).
Lefert, who did not earn a second swim in the 500y free on Thursday despite winning the event at Pac-10s, left no doubt as to where he would finish in the 200y free prelims, posting a 1:33.38, 0.01 off his USC record and 0.11 off the top morning swim.
Colupaev, the 2011 Pac-10 champion in the 200y free who won his conference crown with a 1:34.05, lowered that time to a season-best 1:33.56 to become the second-fastest Trojan ever in the race behind Lefert. Colupaev is the only freshman to earn a spot in the final.
Other finishers in the 200y free for USC included freshman Jack Wagner (28th, 1:36.29, PR) and senior Richard Charlesworth (45th, 1:39.35).
Jones, an All-American on 1-meter and platform as a freshman who didn't even compete at the NCAAs on 3-meter as a sophomore, earned an `A' final spot after scoring 411.00 in prelims, good for third overall. Senior Steven Starks was 21st (343.00).
In the 200y medley relay that began the day, USC earned a second swim by finishing 13th in prelims. The unit of sophomore Nick Karpov, senior Emmett Walling, freshman Chase Bloch and freshman Vladimir Morozov went 1:26.10, just off the school record of 1:26.01.
In the 100y fly, junior Patrick White was 26th (46.96) and Bloch was 35th (47.50).
Senior Dillon Connolly, in the 100y breast, finished 24th in prelims (53.96) while Walling was 33rd (54.90).
In the 100y back, Morozov led USC finishers in 22nd (47.25), 0.24 off a top 16 finish to earn a second swim. Karpov was 23rd (47.38) while sophomore James Lendrum was 26th (47.59, PR).
USC will be one of the top seeds in the timed final of the 800y free relay that will be swum at the end of the evening's finals session, which begins at 7 p.m. CST.
Players Mentioned
